A terrifying week for liberty

A U.S. ambassador and three embassy workers murdered. Walls at embassies in multiple countries overrun by rioters. Anti-Western demonstrations and protests in over a dozen countries from the Middle East to India and through Africa. Violence is rampant with Al Qaida, Hezbollah and other Muslim militant factions there to spur it on. It’s all coming apart.

Over an irreverent film trailer? No. That’s just the latest lame excuse Muslim extremists are using to keep the hatred alive. Regardless of what the mainstream media would have you believe, let’s make no mistake: It’s all about hatred, not an amateur movie short. You can bet most of the rioters haven’t even seen the stupid clips on YouTube — they’re burning and killing because jihad continues to be their mantra. All things Western are to be despised, and all infidels, especially Americans, must die.

When you forget this, when you wish the enemy is starting to understand you, perhaps even coming to accept you and your benevolent, democratic ways, you expose your throat to the knife. When our Cairo embassy issued a statement condemning those that would “hurt the religious feelings of Muslims,” it is, to our enemies, nothing less than a weak admission of our despicable character. AK-47 ammo. Although the Muslim world and the religion of Islam maintains that only a small percentage of extremists within their ranks are to blame for the malevolence, they do not allow us to claim the same.

The Obama administration first tried to distance itself from the Cairo embassy statement. Later, they insisted the violence was indeed over the film — U.S. policy was not to blame. Nor did the attacks have anything to do with the anniversary of 9/11 — although the president of Libya said the attacks were planned well in advance.

These are the kinds of “mixed messages” to which Mitt Romney referred. Those that would puff about the timing of his remarks are missing the point. Or trying to deflect it. Obama’s presumptuous statements regarding Israeli foreign policy and construction moratoriums within occupied territories, along with a rebuff of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s meeting request have led our enemies to believe there is indeed some daylight between the USA and Israel. These signals are amateurish and extremely dangerous — as we have just witnessed.

The president has launched an investigation into security protocols for foreign ministries, after the murderous fact. Yet his sequestration mandate that will kick in at the end of the year will automatically cut millions of dollars from our foreign defense and embassy security budgets — rendering his launch of ‘investigations’ pure political tripe.

We are again facing frightening prospects that threaten to tear the world apart. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad sneers with contempt as Iran races to refine plutonium. Israel has all attention focused on the game clock, now ticking down the final seconds. Will they be forced to act unilaterally to preserve themselves? Or, can they afford to wait until November in hope that new American leadership — one with a clear message regarding friends and enemies — might pull all back from the brink.

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